Westside Subway ExtensionDraft EIS/EIR: September 2010 Public Hearings
Locations Where Draft EIS/EIR can be Viewed
• Online- metro.net/westside
• Public Libraries- Beverly Hills Main
- Donald Bruce Kaufman (Brentwood)
- Fairfax
- Felipe de Neve (Wilshire Center)
- Frances HG Hollywood Regional
- John C. Fremont (Hollywood)
- Memorial (Mid-City)
- Metro Transportation Library
- Pio Pico (Koreatown)- Robertson
- Santa Monica Main
- West Los Angeles Regional
- West Hollywood
- Wilshire
Purpose of Tonight’s Public Hearing
• Brief summary of the Draft Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR)
• Describe decisions required to select the Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA)
• Summary of next steps– Leading up to Metro Board action
– Following Metro Board action
• Listen to public comments– Part of official record
– Responses in Final EIS/EIR
• Comments on Draft EIS/EIR impacts or mitigation measures
• Additional questions you would like answered in Final EIS/EIR
• Comments on the LPA• Alternative choice
• Station options
• Alignment options
• Other
• Suggestions beyond the LPA
What We’d Especially Like to Hear From You
Comments Must be Received by October 18, 2010
Where We are in the Process
Draft EIS/EIR Final EIS/EIR/PE
18 Months 12 Months Minimum 6 Years to ?*
* Depends on Funding Availability
We Are Here
Final Design Construction
18 Months
Alternatives Analysis
17 Alternatives• Modes• Alignments
5 Subway Alternatives
LPA The Project
= Metro Board Decision Point
Public Involvement to Date
During the Alternatives Analysis• October 2007: 5 Early Scoping Meetings• 2008: 3 rounds of Community Update Meetings (12 meetings)• Attendance of nearly 1,200
During the Draft EIS/EIR to Date• April 2009: 6 Public Scoping Meetings• August 2009: 5 Community Update Meetings (Construction)• Oct./Nov. 2009: 5 Community Update Meetings (Station Information)• April 2010: 5 Community Update Meetings (Ridership)• Summer 2010: 5 Community Meetings (Performance)• “Focused” Meetings (Tunneling/Alignments, Crenshaw Station, other)• Attendance of over 2,500
All presentations available at metro.net/westside
No BuildTransportation Systems Management (TSM) AlternativeSubway Alternatives Within Adopted LRTP/Measure R Funding• Alt. 1: Westwood/UCLA Extension• Alt. 2: Westwood/VA Hospital Extension
Subway Alternatives Beyond Adopted LRTP/Measure Funding• Alt. 3: Santa Monica Extension• Alt. 4: Westwood/West Hollywood Extension• Alt. 5: Santa Monica/West Hollywood Extension
Alternatives Under Study in Draft EIS/EIR
LRTP: Long Range Transportation Plan for Los Angeles County
To be Built in PhasesWithin Adopted LRTP/Measure R Funding
• LRTP/Measure R – Allocates $4.2 billion in 2009 dollars (including federal funds) over
approximately 30 years for the Westside Subway Extension– 2019: Phase 1 to Fairfax– 2026: Phase 2 to Century City– 2036: Phase 3 to Westwood/UCLA or Westwood/VA
• 30/10 Initiative– Goal is to fund & build Measure R projects in 10 years– Metro working with Federal government to accelerate funds– Also investigating Public-Private Partnership options– Would allow construction to Westwood in one phase
Draft EIS/EIR
Jointly Prepared by Federal Transit Administration (FTA) & Metro
• Federal Transit Administration: Lead for Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) in conformance with National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)
• Metro: Lead for Environmental Impact Report (EIR) in conformance with California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)
Purpose of the Draft EIS/EIR
• Evaluate performance of the alternatives against required criteria
• Evaluate adverse & beneficial impacts of the alternatives & options:– Temporary impacts during construction
– Ongoing impacts once the subway is operating
• Draft EIS/EIR provides locations & other details of impacts
• Identifies potential mitigations for adverse impacts
• Mitigation plans to be developed during Final EIS/EIR
Concrete decking along Hollywood Blvd. during Red Line Construction
Areas of Environmental Analysis
• Transit Travel Time• Traffic• Parking• Bicycle & Pedestrian• Land Use/Socioeconomics
– Regional Land Use & Development – Land Use Plans– Division of Established Community– Displacements– Environmental Justice– Economic & Fiscal
• Visual Quality• Air Quality• Climate Change
• Noise• Vibration• Energy• Geologic Hazards
– Seismic – Liquefaction– Subsidence– Subsurface Gases
• Hazardous Waste & Materials• Ecosystems/Biological Resources• Water Resources• Safety & Security• Parklands & Community Services• Historic, Archeological, Paleontological• Growth Inducing• Cumulative Impacts
Construction:Areas with Impacts Requiring Mitigation
• Traffic• Parking• Bicycle & Pedestrian• Land Use/Socioeconomics
– Division of Established Community– Economic & Fiscal
• Visual Quality• Air Quality• Noise & Vibration
• Geologic Hazards– Subsidence– Subsurface Gases
• Ecosystems/Biological Resources• Parklands & Community Services• Historic, Archeological, Paleontological• Cumulative Impacts
Refer to Draft EIS/EIR for locations & other details of impacts including potential mitigation measures
Operations:Areas with Impacts Requiring Mitigation
• Traffic• Parking• Land Use/Socioeconomics
– Displacements
• Visual Quality• Vibration• Historic, Archeological,
Paleontological
• Geologic Hazards– Seismic– Liquefaction– Subsurface Gases
• Safety & Security
Refer to Draft EIS/EIR for locations & other details of impacts including potential mitigation measures
Strategies to Address Key Potential Impacts
• Design– Employ latest structural standards to address geological & seismic issues– Tunnel depths reduce or eliminate surface noise & vibration– Utilize noise-dampening rail fasteners
• Construction– Deep-bore tunnels reduce surface noise & vibration– Pressure-balanced tunnel boring machines reduce subsidence– Enhanced tunnel liners & ventilation in gassy ground – Develop detailed utility relocation plan with ongoing utility coordination
• Operations– Ongoing safety monitoring & plans– Other
Refer to Draft EIS/EIR for locations & other details of impacts including potential mitigation measures
Benefits of the Westside Subway Extension
Study area today:• Highly congested corridor• Further decline in bus/auto travel
speeds anticipated• Major job centers• Other key regional destinations• No room for major surface capacity
enhancements Project would provide:• Fast, reliable & high-capacity transit
alternative
From Today*With Project
(Alt 2)San Gabriel Valley-Covina-Pasadena
9982
7251
Downtown/Mid-City-Pershing Square-Koreatown
5436
2414
San Fernando Valley-North Hollywood-Northridge
6198
4172
South LA-Florence-Crenshaw/Green Line
7685
4162
Gateway Cities-Long Beach 114 78
East LA 76 36
*Based on current Metro Schedules
Transit Travel Time to Westwood/UCLA
Using the Draft EIS/EIR to Recommend the Locally Preferred Alternative
Staff recommendationfor the LPA
• Best alternative utilizing federal criteria & considering local input
• Decisions about 5 alternatives & multiple station/alignment options
Key Decisions About the LPA
1. What is the best performing alternative within funding constraints?2. How far west should the subway extend? Westwood/UCLA or
Westwood/VA? 3. Should there be a station at Wilshire/Crenshaw?4. Selecting among multiple station location options at:
• Wilshire/Fairfax• Wilshire/La Cienega• Century City
5. Selecting among multiple alignment options between:• Wilshire/Rodeo & Century City Stations• Century City & Westwood/UCLA Stations
To be informed by Draft EIS/EIR Technical Analysis & Public Input
• Westwood/UCLA• Westwood/VA
1. Best Performing Alternative
• Alternatives 1, 2 & 3 close to meeting federal cost-effectiveness target for performance of heavy-rail subway
• Wilshire corridor has better land use & transit connections than Santa Monica corridor– Serves more key regional destination centers: Mid-Wilshire, Beverly Hills,
Century City, Westwood– High population & employment concentrations – More direct transit connections from other regions including through Union
Station• Only Alternatives 1 & 2 are currently
fundable through:– Measure R local dollars– Federal “New Starts” matching funds– 2009 LRTP
• All alternatives have public support
2. How Far West to Extend the LPA: Westwood/VA or Westwood/UCLA
• Alt. 1 UCLA terminus station:– 46,000 line boardings – 14,310 boardings at UCLA station– Major transit interface in Westwood
• Alt. 2 VA terminus station:– 53,000 line boardings (+6,610)– 8,000 boardings at VA station– Serves regional VA center– Reduces UCLA station boardings by 1,680– Provides access to/from west of I-405
• Public input
3. Should there be a Station at Wilshire/Crenshaw?
• Station cost: $153m (in 2009 dollars)• Ridership:
– Daily station boardings (2035) = 4,200 - 4,300– Full line loses about 1,300 riders without Crenshaw Station
• Land use issue: Low-density area• Typical spacing between subway stations is one mile
– Crenshaw is ½ mile from Western– La Brea is 2 miles from Western
• Transit connectivity– Crenshaw LRT being planned from Expo south– Future connection to Wilshire
would not be at Crenshaw• Public input
4. Selecting Among Multiple Station Locations
= Differentiating factor in selecting station alternative
Wilshire/Fairfax Wilshire/La Cienega CenturyCity Westwood/UCLA Westwood/VA
Wilshire/Fairfax Wilshire/La Cienega CenturyCity Westwood/UCLA Westwood/VA
Stations Ridership
Constructi
on
Issues Enginee
ring
Issues Propert
y For
Portal(s
)Seis
mic
Issues Future
Rail
Connectio
nTerm
inus
Station
Issues
Public In
put
Bus, Bike
, Ped
Connectio
ns
5. Selecting Among Multiple Alignments
= Differentiating factor in selecting alignment
Wilshire/Rodeo toCentury City
Century City toWestwood/UCLA
Alignment Options Connec
tions
To Stations
Number of
Easem
ents
Seismic
Issues Constr
uction
Cost Travel
Time
Ridership
Public In
put
Alignments: Rodeo to Century City(Depths to Track)
AlignmentNo. of
Residential Easements
Santa Monica 0Constellation N 4
Constellation S 23
Alignments: Century City to Westwood(Depths to Track)
Alignment
No. of UndergroundResidential Easements
East 56-69Central 75-110West 30-65
What Happens Next
• October 18, 2010: Close of Public Comment• Metro staff develops recommendations & summarizes
public comments• October 28, 2010: Metro Board Consideration
- Staff LPA recommendations- Adopt Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA)- Narrow options for further analysis in Final EIS/EIR
- Authorize preparation of Final EIS/EIR, PE & continued outreach
- Seek FTA approval to enter New Starts Preliminary Engineering
- Consider any additional recommendations
Activities During Final EIS/EIR
Complete environmental clearance process:
• Continued public involvement• Respond to public comments• Further geotechnical investigation• Refine engineering• Finalize cost estimates• Refine station alignment & design• Preliminary Engineering• Determine construction staging locations• Commit to mitigation measures
How to Comment on the Draft EIS/EIR
• Testify verbally at a public hearing
• Submit written comments at a public hearing
• Send a letter/written comments to:David MiegerMetroOne Gateway Plaza 99-22-5Los Angeles, CA 90012
• Complete online comment form
– www.metro.net/westside
• Send e-mail to [email protected]
• NOTE: Comments via Facebook & Twitter will not be considered as part of official public comment
Comments Must be Received by October 18, 2010
• Monday, September 20 – LACMA West- This hearing will be available by live webcast at
www.metro.net/westside
• Tuesday, September 21 – Westwood United Methodist Church
• Wednesday, September 22 – West Hollywood Plummer Park
• Monday, September 27 – Beverly Hills Roxbury Park- This hearing will be available by live webcast at
www.metro.net/westside
• Wednesday, September 29 - Santa Monica Main Library
Schedule of Public Hearings
All meetings 6pm - 8pm
• Two minutes per speaker (four minutes with translation)
• Three names called at a time; please line up and be prepared
• State your name clearly
• Speak clearly for court reporter
• Please be respectful of all speakers
• No response to comments tonight
• Each comment will be addressed in writing in the Final EIS/EIR
Tonight’s Public Hearing
• Comments on Draft EIS/EIR impacts or mitigation measures
• Additional questions you would like answered in Final EIS/EIR
• Comments on the LPA• Alternative choice
• Station options
• Alignment options
• Other
• Suggestions beyond the LPA
What We’d Especially Like to Hear From You
Comments Must be Received by October 18, 2010
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